Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Corporation and the Chief of Staff

The Office of the President seeks an accomplished Executive Assistant to provide high-level administrative and operational support to the Secretary to the Corporation and the Associate Vice President and Chief of Staff to the President. This position serves as a trusted partner to both leaders, managing complex schedules and priorities, coordinating meetings and travel, preparing correspondence and materials, and helping ensure commitments and follow-up actions are carried through.

The Executive Assistant also supports select Board of Trustees activities, provides backup coverage for the Executive Assistant to the President, and contributes to the smooth operation of the Office of the President.

Ideal Candidate Statement:

The ideal candidate is an experienced executive support professional who is highly organized, resourceful, and comfortable supporting senior leaders and managing competing priorities. They exercise sound judgment and discretion, anticipate needs, communicate with confidence and professionalism, and take ownership of their work with exceptional attention to detail and follow-through. They are collaborative, adaptable, and able to build trusted relationships with senior leaders, colleagues across the university, and external stakeholders.

Workplace Schedule Requirements:

This role requires occasional work outside standard business hours, particularly around Board meetings, commencement, presidential events, and travel by either principal. The office operates at a steady pace, with periods of higher activity around key events and institutional priorities.

Workplace Location:

On-campus position: This is an on-campus position, with the possibility of occasional remote workdays based on office needs, workload, and scheduled activities. Per Rice policy 440 , work arrangements may be subject to change.

Workplace Requirements:

- Movement: Walk, Occasionally (<33%); Climb Stairs, Ladders, Inclines, Objects/Equipment, Step Ladders, Rarely/As Required
- Mobility: Sitting, Standing, As Required; Repetitive Hand/Wrist/Finger Movement, Frequently
- Weight: 0-20 lbs.
- Sensory: Vision, Depth Perception, Hearing, Touch, Dexterity, Speech
- Environment: Office/Indoor
- Computer/Visual: Close visual acuity required for viewing computer monitors, reading documents, analyzing information, and performing computer-based work.

Hiring Range: Up to $90,000 annually, commensurate with experience and qualifications.

*Exempt (salaried) positions under FLSA are not eligible for overtime.

Minimum Requirements:

- Bachelor's degree In lieu of the education requirement, additional related experience above and beyond what is required may be substituted on an equivalent year-for-year basis.

- Two or more (2+) years of progressively responsible administrative or executive support experience, including direct support of senior leaders.
- Demonstrated discretion and sound judgment in handling confidential, sensitive, and privileged information.
- Fluency in Google Workspace, including calendar delegation and management across multiple accounts, shared-drive architecture and permissions, document collaboration, and spreadsheet functions beyond basic data entry.
- Demonstrated proficiency with a project- or task-management platform and the capacity to work in Asana confidently and independently within the first several weeks.
- Excellent writing, editing, and proofreading skills, with the ability to draft correspondence on behalf of others.
- Proven ability to manage competing priorities from multiple principals, navigate changing demands, determine what requires immediate attention, and communicate effectively as priorities shift.
- Strong interpersonal skills and the poise to interact effectively with trustees, senior university officers, external partners, and their staff.
- Meticulous attention to detail and consistent follow-through without prompting.

Preferences:

- Five or more (5+) years of progressively responsible administrative or executive support experience, including direct support of senior leaders.
- Experience supporting and liaising directly with a governing board in any sector.
- Working knowledge of Diligent Boards or a comparable board portal platform.
- Experience in higher education, a nonprofit governance environment, professional services, or another complex environment with comparable confidentiality expectations.
- Experience with enterprise financial and expense-management systems.

Essential Functions:

Executive Support

- Manage complex, high-volume calendars for the Secretary to the Corporation and Chief of Staff, proactively resolving scheduling conflicts and coordinating with senior university leaders, trustees, external partners, and their staff.
- Coordinate closely with the Executive Assistant to the President and executive assistants across the university to facilitate meetings, events, and institutional priorities.
- Prepare executives for meetings by coordinating agendas, briefing materials, pre-reads, presentations, and other supporting information.
- Coordinate meeting logistics, including rooms, technology, catering, and virtual participation; attend meetings as needed to capture action items, coordinate follow-up, and track commitments through completion.
- Draft, edit, proofread, and coordinate correspondence, memoranda, presentations, and routine communications.
- Assist with inbox management by identifying urgent matters, routing requests appropriately, and tracking items requiring response or follow-up.
- Coordinate domestic and occasional international travel, including transportation, accommodations, itineraries, and supporting materials.
- Prepare expense reports, reconcile procurement-card activity and departmental charges, and coordinate with office business-administration staff as needed.
- Maintain appropriate contact lists, distribution lists, files, and other administrative records.

Board and Governance Support

- Support the Secretary to the Corporation in coordinating the annual Board and committee meeting cycle and communicating with trustees, committee chairs, and their assistants.
- Maintain Board materials and information in Diligent, including posting and organizing materials and managing appropriate access and permissions.
- Maintain organized and accessible governance files, corporate records, committee membership and meeting information, and reference materials, including coordination with university archives as appropriate.
- Prepare and format Board-related documents, resolutions, presentations, correspondence, and other materials for the Secretary's review.
- Support Board and committee meetings through materials preparation, scheduling, room and catering arrangements, and day-of logistics in coordination with staff responsible for Board operations and meeting planning.

Presidential and Office Support

- Provide backup coverage for the Executive Assistant to the President during planned absences and periods of high volume, including management of presidential scheduling and meeting preparation.
- Ensure the President has appropriate materials and background information for scheduled meetings and provide day-of scheduling support when providing coverage.
- Assist with presidential correspondence during coverage periods, including mail, letters for signature, correspondence tracking, and triage of the President's general email account.
- Provide additional administrative and operational support to the Office of the President as priorities require.

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Rice University is committed to ensuring Equal Employment Opportunity and welcoming the fullness of diversity into our candidate pools. Rice considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability, or protected veteran status. Rice also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified persons with disabilities. If an applicant requires a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, please get in touch with Rice University’s Human Resources Office via email at [email protected] for support.

If you have any additional questions, please email us at [email protected] . Thank you for your interest in employment with Rice University.